Monday, February 28, 2005

After about 9 months of organizing that saw numerous big challenges, hurdles and personal crises, the big event is finally complete. This Alberta Social Forum event had a lot of successes and a few disappointments.

While we were far from the level of inclusivity we had hoped for, there were some great stories. The presence and full-inclusion of members of the deaf-blind community was very exciting. Additionally, a self-advocate from the developmental disability community reported really enjoying the sessions he attended - with no feelings of exclusion.

Attendance was lower than we had hoped, but we kept hearing from participants who really enjoyed and valued the sessions they went to. In the end, there were over 40 sessions offered on Saturday and Sunday. I helped or presented at 5 of them - including a session on Craftivism for the Revolutionary Knitting Circle.

Sunday, February 20, 2005

My contribution was a river canyon with train bridge [photos of my Lego River Canyon and Train Bridge]. I had a couple of very sleep-deprived nights trying to finish it off right before the show. As it was, I wasn't quite finished when the show opened, so finished it over the first hour or two of the show. That actually turned out okay because people actually were quite interested to watch the display being built right in front of them.

My thanks to the rest of the SALUG members who made the project so much fun, built great models, and contributed to our success this year. We've been invited to a few more train shows this year, so there's lots more fun ahead.

Saturday, February 19, 2005

I'm super exhausted because I spent the last couple of nights frantically trying to finish my chunk of the display. I put together a river canyon with a bridge running across it (I should have some photos up within a couple days). It's 144 studs wide by 48 studs deep - and 29 inches high. This is the biggest Lego model I've ever built.

The event was packed. A lot of the people who came were parents with young children. That's good for the SALUG team because they are likely to vote for us as the best display in the show - the Lego is a real crowd-pleaser for kids. So, we stand a good chance of winning an award again this year.Lego, train, SALUG, AFOL, modeltrain.

The Eyes on the Screen screening of Eyes on the Prize went well last night. About a dozen of us here in Calgary watched episode one of the documentary series.

I opened the event with a short spiel giving the background on the copyright issues plaguing the series - and other cultural and historical records. We then watched the film and followed it with a short discussion on civil rights activism.

Tuesday, February 8, 2005

The seniors in residence at Hobart's Strathaven Home (in Tasmania) have done some incredible work producing all sorts of furnishings and objects (including a wide selection of food replicas) - entirely in yarn using knitting and crochet.

Saturday, February 5, 2005

Years ago, when I was first doing websites, I had a section on my personal pages about comic books - particularly independent comics. Writer & artist Josh Neufeld came across the site and got in touch with me, since we share the same last name.

We've chatted occasionally since then by email, and I've made a point of picking up his work when I come across it. For anyone who enjoys autobiographical comics, his work is definitely worth a look.

Anyway, he sent out a note pointing to a recent interview on the Sequential Tart site. It's primarily a discussion, including Josh's partner Sari Wilson, about the travels that Josh covers in his work.